


A Study in Grief

by crazyfangirl221b



Series: A Universe Made of Stars [6]
Category: Superman - All Media Types
Genre: But He Gets Better, Clark kinda dies for a bit, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-27
Updated: 2017-07-27
Packaged: 2018-12-07 23:55:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11634600
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crazyfangirl221b/pseuds/crazyfangirl221b
Summary: Lex Luthor attacks the Daily Planet to lure out Superman. It does not go as planned.





	A Study in Grief

“Today is a good day.” Clark said to Lois as he sat down at his desk.

****

“Today is a boring day.” Lois said, rolling her eyes.

****

“Boring means no life-threatening situations, which is good in my book.” Clark replied cheerfully, refusing to be swayed.

****

“How many u’s in ‘sarcastic’?” Lois practically growled, hunched over her laptop.

****

“What?” Clark asked with mild horror rolling his chair over to look. “Lois, are you trying to spell ‘sar-caustic’ and make a poison pun? Because I don’t think it’s working.” 

****

Lois narrowed her eyes and deleted the sentence. She was about to deliver a scathing retort when she was rudely interrupted by a man in high tech armor entering the bullpen from the outer wall. And no, he did not use the door.

****

Clark fell off of his chair and scrambled back to his desk to hide. Lois stood up so fast her chair rolled into the desk across the aisle. “Jimmy! Get your camera!” She shouted as she grabbed her recorder.

****

“Lois! Get to safety!” Jimmy called back as he hid in Perry’s office.

****

Ignoring him and switching on the recorder, Lois began narrating. “As he crashed into the office Luthor was surrounded by a strange glow. It faded as he pushed a button. Oh! A force field, that’s why his head’s exposed.” Lois climbed over her desk. “Probably a limited power source too, if he turned it off.”

****

Now the primary problem with live narration of a supervillain attack, is that, if the supervillain is paying attention, they can hear it.

****

“Lane,” Luthor said raising his hand, “You’re about to wish you hadn’t realized that.” The palm of the gauntlet began to glow red.

****

“Laser hands? No! Red sun radiation!” Lois continued moving closer, dimly aware of the crazed smile that had spread across her face. “Very hot!” She crouched behind the row of desks and dodged as best as she could.

****

She looked up and saw the paperweight on her desk, about the size of a softball. She leaned over to say something to Clark and saw where Luthor’s blast had hit.

****

Clark’s desk was splinters, burn plastic, and bits of paper, burning as they floated gently to the floor. Clark was lying where he’d hid, scorched and far too still.

****

Lois was standing at her desk and the paperweight was in her hand. Luthor raised his arm again, with a smirking confidence. Lois saw a glow in his suit, a power source. The paperweight shattered in his chest, broken glass and shards of green crystal. Luthor’s smirk turned to shock. He stumbled backwards a few steps, seemingly unaware his high tech battle suit was now of little use.

****

There was a letter opener on Lois’s desk. It was part of a stationary set Clark had given her for the last Christmas. Its blade gleamed silver in the flickering lights.

****

Lois was dimly aware of a heartbroken scream that seemed to come from her own throat. She didn’t feel heartbroken, just numb. Then, anger.

****

The letter opener was in her hand.

****

Luthor’s shock turned to rage as Lois ran through the path of destruction his blast had carved into the desks.

****

“Summon the Superman, Ms.Lane,” he shouted. “Summon him and I will show you mercy.”

****

Lois launched herself shoulder first at his chest, just below the shards of kryptonite. He toppled to the floor in his tin can of a suit with her landing on top of him.

****

Her eyes were open too wide, trying to stave off tears. Her mouth trembled as she leaned in, inches from his face, and whispered, “No.”

****

Now the primary reason with treating people as expendable pawns is, of course, that they are not.

****

Luthor’s eyes went wide and his mouth opened in horror as his eyes flicked from her face to the blade in Lois’s raised fist. She saw it, the exact moment when he registered the expression on her face as one of a woman who had just lost the thing that mattered most.

****

“Superman!” He cried as he pushed her off of him and scrambled to get away. He’d barely made it to his feet when he realized his armor was now less than worthless.

****

Lois tackled him to the ground again as he frantically began to pull the armor off. She raised the blade again and he raised his now armorless arms to block its descent to his throat. Lois buried the blade in his left arm and ripped it out again for another strike. Luthor screamed and the blade dripped blood.

****

“Lois,” a choked voice came from across the room. She turned to look and saw Clark. His clothing ripped and burnt, his face smudged with soot, leaning against a desk, and looking like death warmed over.

****

“Clark,” she breathed, as the letter opener fell to the floor. 

****

Luthor sighed in relief and slumped against the wall that had trapped him.

****

Lois ran toward Clark and crashed into him at full speed, clinging to him as they stumbled, but didn’t fall. “You were dead,” she whispered.

****

“No. Just playing possum.” Clark said gently, wrapping his arms around her.

****

She closed her eyes and buried her face into his chest. “You’re alive.”

****

Clark nodded as he stroked her hair. “Yeah, Lois. You’d never forgive me for leaving you,” he murmured with a small smile.

****

Lois let out a chuckle at that. Then she took a step back, wiped the tears from her eyes and punched him softly in the shoulder. “Kent, if you ever die on me like that again, I’ll kill you myself,” she told him with a paper thin veneer of bravado.

****

Clark grinned and gave her a mocking salute. “Yes ma’am, Ms.Lane!”

****

Lois rolled her eyes, but reached for his hand. When he took hers she gripped back just a little too tight, and pulled him forward.

****

“Aren’t we forgetting about the evil supervillain?” Clark asked as he trailed behind her.

****

“Oh, he wouldn’t dare move.” Lois said with a terrifying grin.

****

“What have I gotten myself into?” Clark asked, half joking.

****

“Is that an innuendo?” Lois stopped short, turned to face him,  and raised her eyebrow.

****

Clark blinked twice and opened his mouth to protest, then noticed her reckless grin. So instead he leaned in slightly, “Would you like it to be?”


End file.
